LIVERMORE FALLS – Voters here will be faced with a different format and a different place when they attend their town meeting at 7 p.m. Wednesday.

This year the meeting will be held in the high school cafeteria, rather than in the usual library auditorium. Selectmen made the change several weeks ago in anticipation of a larger-than-normal turnout due to several controversial articles on the warrant. The change in format is that most articles carry two recommendations, one from the selectmen and the other from the Budget Committee.

The total from the two groups is very close; the selectmen have proposed about $10,000 more than the Budget Committee. As presented, the recommendations from each group would represent a decrease in spending, but those potential savings could be wiped out if voters pick and choose the higher figures, going with selectmen on some and with the Budget Committee on others. That type of voting could result in a half-mill increase in the tax rate, according to Town Manager Alan Gove.

Major differences in proposed spending occur in capital improvements, capital reserves, dispatch, assessors’ agent, fire department and insurance accounts.

An unknown factor in the mix is the status of former highway worker Ralph Black, who is appealing his dismissal. The highway budget is based on a four-man crew plus foreman and currently does not include Black.



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